Leveling with the Gods

C449

-Ni#####

In response to the cry of Shub-Niggurath, the surrounding trees shattered and fell to the side. Her rage was immense.

It wasn't because she felt betrayed. In the first place, she never considered Foolish Chaos an ally, so the word "betrayal" wasn't appropriate.

However...

What infuriated her so much was the fact that two names had already been snatched away.

Beeeh-!

Beeh-.

The sheep around her began to bleat.

Reactions of submission and fear spread everywhere.

Upon hearing the bleating of the sheep, Shub-Niggurath gradually regained her composure.

She stroked the soft wool of the sheep that had gathered around her and tried to reassure them.

-Well. This mother apologizes.

Beeeh-.

The sheep were beings born from the names of Shub-Niggurath. They were deeply connected to her emotions and reacted sensitively.

That's why Shub-Niggurath hurried to calm her heart. The fight was not over yet, and getting more excited here wouldn't help.

-The losses are great.

She had lost two names.

Although she had considered the possibility of losing one, she had not thought of losing two.

-Things are not going well.

If she couldn't win this confrontation and snatch Foolish Chaos's name after all this, even if things somehow resolved, she wouldn't leave empty-handed.

Beeeh-.

It was then...

The heads of the sheep that roamed around Shub-Niggurath turned.

-Why are they acting like this?

Shub-Niggurath asked, observing the frantic reaction of the sheep.

That's when she realized that the place where she was standing was different.

It should have been the Black Woods.

Although the black color remained the same, the trees surrounding her had disappeared without a trace.

-You've been quite distracted.

She hadn't noticed the change of place.

Since the Black Woods wouldn't suddenly disappear, it meant she had moved at some point.

Not noticing that change was indicative of how much her senses had twisted.

-Yes, who are you?

Shub-Niggurath asked as she scanned the surrounding darkness without a single trace of light.

-You invited me.

Step-.

Footsteps were heard.

It was a faint sound, but it suddenly echoed from nearby.

It was a familiar face.

And it was the opponent she mistrusted the most from the beginning.

-You move less cautiously.

Swoo-.

YuWon, who revealed his face from the darkness, stood in front of Shub-Niggurath. Compared to how tall Shub-Niggurath is, YuWon is about a head shorter.

[The 'Otherworld Opponent' challenges 'Shub-Niggurath.']

The message not only resonated in YuWon's head but also reached Shub-Niggurath.

Although there was no system in her, it was as if that information was engraved in her instinct.

-The Otherworld Opponent, huh? That's quite an arrogant name.

She looked into YuWon's unfocused eyes and felt a strange sensation.

Clearly, YuWon's outward appearance was no different from before. The energy he emanated was also the same.

But the name "Otherworld Opponent."

And the atmosphere emanating from him.

-Where did that boy go?

Although YuWon, with the name Otherworld Opponent, was also threatening, he was still an unripe fruit.

But Danpung by his side was different.

If the 'thing' she was thinking was correct, even though its outward appearance had shrunk, the inside of that thing would be larger than any entity she knew.

While Shub-Niggurath looked for Danpung for a moment, her eyes met YuWon's, who was gradually regaining focus.

And at that moment...

-... It's you.

Shub-Niggurath instinctively perceived it.

Within YuWon's sight, she found the little one she had been looking for, nestled inside him.

-You were that little one.

-Still...

YuWon's mouth opened.

-Do I still look like a child?

A voice that resonated in the same space as Shub-Niggurath.

That voice made Shub-Niggurath's pupils widen as if they were about to break. YuWon's figure was reflected in those large eyes, shining like jewels, and along with it, lights like the stars of the universe emerged in the dark surroundings.

-It's been a long time, Sothoth's Whore.

Sothoth.

She knew that name.

Just as Foolish Chaos called her "Bitch," she didn't feel offended at being called 'Whore.' Now was not the time to be in the mood for that, or for the name 'Sothoth.'

YuWon seemed to know and say everything.

It was a moment when doubt turned almost into certainty.

-Really...

Shub-Niggurath almost knelt and bowed, about to bow.

She knew she didn't have to do it. Or, she knew she shouldn't do it.

-Is it you?

-Why ask something you already know?

-Hadn't you disappeared?

-I disappeared. I had died.

-But, how...?

-Even the phoenix, a mere immortal creature, rises from extinguished ashes. Does that explain it?

An existence symbolizing immortality, even resurrecting from ashes after death. Although YuWon belittled the phoenix as a simple animal, there was no discomfort in YuWon's words.

The determination of life or death depended on who uttered those words. And the presence before Shub-Niggurath's eyes was someone who lacked nothing in the ability to speak those words.

-It won't change anything.

Beeeeeh

Beeeh

Beeh.

Following Shub-Niggurath's wish, sheep appeared around.

A flock that filled its surroundings.

YuWon's figure, surrounded by that flock, looked like it could be buried in the sheep's wool at any moment.

-The phoenix rises from the ashes, but the spark doesn't light up the sky from the beginning. The same goes for you.

-Yes, it's the same for me.

-I still see you as a child in my eyes. Your imposing presence and your greatness fell to the ground, and the power your name carried vanished, leaving only an empty shell.

It wasn't a statement directed at YuWon.

It was Shub-Niggurath talking to herself.

It was a challenge to the one she had once revered on her knees. It was a renewed reflection on the fall of the King who, powerless, was naked.

But.

Beeeh

Beeh.

The sheep surrounding YuWon, showing their fangs as if about to devour him, suddenly became docile.

YuWon stroked the fur of those sheep. The sheep, bleating happily, looked at Shub-Niggurath one after another.

With eyes they had never shown before.

-All your words are correct, but one is wrong.

Beeh~

Suddenly, the king of the sheep, who became the leader, spoke through YuWon's mouth.

-The true essence is not the shell but the core. All those multiple identities you cling to are just empty shells.

-Shells...?

As if she couldn't believe it, Shub-Niggurath's pupils trembled.

The sheep backed away. It was a denial of Shub-Niggurath's assertion that she was the "Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young."

With the feeling that something like this had never happened before, Shub-Niggurath reached out forward.

The moment she tried to stroke the sheep's wool that was so close...

Crack.

Until now, the sheep's fangs that had long been chasing enemies alongside Shub-Niggurath started biting her hand.

It was shocking...

That her own offspring would bite her...

-That's what the power of a name means. In the first place, these sheep don't follow you. They follow the name you possess.

-I still have the name.

-That's an obvious statement. You still have it.

-But why...?

-These sheep follow your name, but at the same time, they follow 'me.'

Me...

It didn't mean having a name like The Goat Who Gives Birth to Madness or Perverse Fertility Deity. It meant having the true name hidden inside, like Shub-Niggurath.

-A name that can't be snatched away. A name that won't disappear even if you're killed and trampled a hundred times.

-A name like that... has power?

-You might not know. You've adorned yourself too much with a false name. You've been losing what's truly important. But anyway.

In YuWon's eyes, Shub-Niggurath's figure reflected like in a mirror.

-This story may not concern you.

It was a story known to all.

But knowing it in the mind didn't mean she could accept everything.

Shub-Niggurath felt like her name, which had been permitted to her, was slowly being erased, one letter at a time.

-You shouldn't be surprised. Weren't you preparing for it?

In response to the provocation, Shub-Niggurath raised her head.

-I wasn't preparing. It wasn't something necessary.

-I respect your thinking. But if so, you shouldn't be surprised by what's happening now.

The power of the name was disappearing.

'The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young' was disappearing, leaving only 'Shub-Niggurath.'

And what was taking away that name was a presence imprinted on YuWon's body.

-You wanted my name.

Step by step, YuWon approached Shub-Niggurath.

Instinctively, she thought of stepping away from him. However, she didn't intend to resist shamefully just because she had sensed what was coming.

From the beginning, she had been thinking that moments like this might happen.

-But in the end, that name returned to someone else. And, unable to let go even of the name, you lost the name you had.

Swish.

Shub-Niggurath's skin peeled off, turning into a handful of flesh and bone dust.

-Still, you shouldn't complain too much. After all, all names come from me.

When the power of the name scattered like dust...

Sshh.

-That's what you really are.

The giant goat form and the beautiful female figure disappeared completely.

In their place, a small, young sheep appeared before YuWon's eyes.

Beeeh.

It wasn't much different from other sheep. In fact, it was much smaller than the other newborn sheep.

Shub-Niggurath.

The only true name, small and unattractive, hidden within a huge name.

To hide that name, Shub-Niggurath wrapped her body with various names and sought another name.

And so, the throat of the young sheep, which finally revealed its true appearance...

Slash.

YuWon cut it with a single blow.

Thud, he beheaded the sheep, which bounced several times on the ground. Curiously, the head rolled to YuWon's feet and stopped when it hit his legs.

And at the same time...

Sssss.

From the severed neck section, a purple mist emerged.

And the moment that mist enveloped YuWon's body.

[You have defeated 'Shub-Niggurath']

['Danpung' has acquired the name 'Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young']

The name now belonged entirely to Danpung.

KO-FI